Only the lower half of her body was visible above the ash.
On the slopes of Mount Dukono, a volcano that had long signaled its dangers through official bans and expanding exclusion zones, human ambition met geological force on May 8, 2026. Twenty hikers — nine Singaporean, eleven Indonesian — climbed despite the warnings, and when the mountain erupted, it swallowed two of them into its ash. Now 150 rescuers search a narrow corridor of volcanic sand near the crater's rim, working against weather, ongoing eruptions, and the quiet arithmetic of survival odds, while one body already recovered reminds the world that some boundaries exist not to be tested.
- Mount Dukono erupted without warning on May 8, burying hikers in hot rocks and ash despite a climbing ban that had been in place for nearly a month.
- One Indonesian woman's body was found half-submerged in volcanic sand just fifty metres from the crater rim, her recovery requiring a dozen rescuers to carry her down treacherous, rain-slicked terrain.
- Two Singaporean hikers remain missing, with GPS-marked sand mounds near the crater now the focal point of a desperate, methodical search across a 1.25-kilometre radius.
- Intermittent eruptions, falling ash, and unpredictable weather have forced rescuers to suspend operations at nightfall, racing daylight and the volcano's continued activity.
- Seven surviving Singaporean hikers from the group of twenty were evacuated toward Jakarta, expected home by May 10, as the search for their companions grows more urgent with each passing hour.
On the morning of May 8, Mount Dukono on the remote Indonesian island of Halmahera erupted without warning, sending hot rocks, ash, and debris down its slopes toward a group of twenty hikers near the summit. Nine were Singaporean, eleven Indonesian — all had climbed in defiance of a ban imposed since April 17 and a four-kilometre exclusion zone that volcanologists had only recently expanded. When the eruption subsided, two Singaporean hikers had vanished into the volcanic landscape.
By May 10, Indonesia's search and rescue agency Basarnas had deployed 150 personnel across four units, combing a 1.25-kilometre radius from where the hikers were last seen. The search had narrowed to two small mounds of volcanic sand near the crater's rim, GPS-marked by the National Disaster Mitigation Agency as the most likely locations of the two remaining victims.
The day before, rescuers had found the body of an Indonesian woman around 2:30 in the afternoon, approximately fifty metres from the crater rim. Only the lower half of her body was visible above the ash when conditions finally allowed them to return after heavy rain had driven them to shelter. More than a dozen rescuers in orange helmets carried her remains down the mountain in single file, navigating fallen logs and slick volcanic soil — the terrain itself a formidable obstacle.
Iwan Ramdani, head of the Ternate rescue office, expressed cautious hope before operations resumed on May 10, but acknowledged the weight of what his teams faced: the volcano was still erupting intermittently, ash continued to fall, and weather remained unpredictable. Safety, he stressed, would not be sacrificed for speed. As volcanic activity remained high on the evening of May 9, the difficult decision was made to suspend the search until morning.
The seven other Singaporean hikers from the original group were evacuated and en route to Jakarta, expected to return home by May 10. The mountain had already claimed one life with certainty. Two others remained somewhere in the volcanic sand, and the search continued.
On the morning of May 8, Mount Dukono erupted without warning. The volcano, sitting on the remote island of Halmahera in eastern Indonesia, sent hot rocks, ash, and volcanic debris cascading down its slopes toward the climbers near the summit. Among them were twenty hikers—nine from Singapore, eleven from Indonesia—who had made the trek despite a climbing ban that local authorities had imposed nearly a month earlier and a four-kilometre exclusion zone that volcanologists had expanded from three kilometres just the year before. When the mountain settled, two Singaporean hikers had vanished.
By May 10, two days after the eruption, the search had narrowed to a grimly specific location: two small mounds of volcanic sand near the crater's rim, positioned just three metres from where rescuers had found the body of an Indonesian woman the day before. Indonesia's search and rescue agency, Basarnas, had mobilized 150 personnel divided into four separate units, tasked with combing through an area stretching roughly 1.25 kilometres from the point where the hikers were last seen. The operation was methodical but urgent, guided by the discovery of the first victim and the knowledge that time was running out.
The woman's body had been located around 2:30 in the afternoon on May 9, approximately fifty metres from the crater rim. Rescuers had been working through deep volcanic sand when heavy rain forced them to seek shelter. When conditions improved enough to continue, only the lower half of her body—from feet to waist—was visible above the ash. The recovery itself was a feat of difficult logistics: more than a dozen rescuers in orange helmets and uniforms moved in single file through dense mountain forest, stepping carefully over fallen logs and slick volcanic soil as they carried her remains down the mountain on a stretcher. The footage released by the agency captured the sheer physical challenge of the operation, the landscape itself seeming to resist their efforts.
Iwan Ramdani, head of the Ternate search and rescue office, briefed the teams before operations resumed on May 10. He expressed cautious hope that the two missing Singaporeans might be found on the third day of the search, but his words carried the weight of the conditions they were facing. The volcano continued to erupt intermittently. Hot ash and other material kept falling. Weather remained unpredictable. Safety, he emphasized, remained the priority even as the search grew more desperate.
The National Disaster Mitigation Agency had marked the two sand mounds using GPS coordinates and released a statement saying the locations were strongly suspected to be linked to the two remaining victims. But suspicion was not certainty, and the volcano was still active. As daylight faded on May 9, with volcanic activity still high, the team had made the difficult decision to suspend further work. They would resume in the morning, searching the same narrow band of terrain, hoping that the two hikers from Singapore might somehow be found alive or that their remains might be recovered for their families.
Meanwhile, seven other Singaporean hikers who had been part of the original group of twenty were being evacuated. They were on their way to Jakarta on May 9, expected to return to Singapore by May 10. The climbing ban that had been in place since April 17 had not stopped the group from attempting the trek. The expanded exclusion zone had not deterred them either. Now the mountain had claimed at least one life with certainty, and two others remained missing in the volcanic sand.
Citações Notáveis
We hope the two foreign nationals can be found on the third day of this operation.— Iwan Ramdani, head of Ternate search and rescue office
The safety of the rescue team remains the priority because weather conditions and volcanic activity continue to produce hot ash and other material.— Iwan Ramdani
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why did they climb at all if there was an official ban and an exclusion zone?
The ban had been in place for nearly a month. Sometimes people assess risk differently than authorities do, or they believe the danger has passed. We don't know their specific reasoning, but they were part of a larger group of twenty, which may have created a sense of safety in numbers.
The woman who was found—was she part of the same group?
Yes. All twenty hikers—the nine Singaporeans and eleven Indonesians—were climbing together that morning. The eruption caught them all.
What does it mean that the search is focused on two specific sand mounds?
The rescuers found the first victim near those mounds. In volcanic terrain after an eruption, bodies can be buried or partially buried in ash and debris. The GPS-marked locations suggest the rescue teams have reason to believe the two missing hikers are in that immediate area, probably buried under the volcanic material.
How dangerous is it for the rescue teams themselves?
Very. The volcano is still erupting intermittently. Hot ash is still falling. The terrain is unstable—deep volcanic sand, slick soil, fallen trees. And they're working near an active crater. The rescue coordinator made clear that protecting the teams is as important as finding the missing hikers.
What happens if they don't find them in the next few days?
The source doesn't say. But as time passes and volcanic activity continues, the search becomes harder and more dangerous. At some point, the decision to continue or suspend becomes a calculation of risk versus hope.
The seven evacuated Singaporeans—are they safe now?
They're being transported out. But they've witnessed something traumatic. They were on the same mountain when it erupted. They lost two companions.